Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
WHO Says Rich Countries Shouldn't Think Of Booster Shots, Donate Instead
Stat: WHO Director-General Slams Notion Of Covid-19 Vaccine Booster Doses
The director-general of the World Health Organization on Monday issued a stinging rebuke to Pfizer and other vaccine manufacturers focused on developing — and selling — Covid-19 vaccine booster shots to high-income countries, saying they should focus instead on providing vaccine to nations that have had little access to first doses. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus’ statement came four days after Pfizer said it has data to support its repeated claim that a third dose of its vaccine will be needed to keep protection levels high. He also singled out Moderna, which, like Pfizer, is developing updated vaccines targeted at variants. (Branswell, 7/12)
AP: WHO: Rich Countries Should Donate Vaccines, Not Use Boosters
At a press briefing, WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said the world’s grotesque vaccine disparity was driven by “greed,” as he called on drugmakers to prioritize supplying their COVID-19 vaccines to poor countries instead of lobbying rich countries to use even more doses. His plea comes just as pharmaceutical companies are seeking authorization for third doses to be used as boosters in some Western countries, including the U.S. “We are making conscious choices right now not to protect those in need,” Tedros said, adding the immediate priority must be to vaccinate people who have yet to receive a single dose. (Cheng, 7/13)
Reuters: WHO Warns Against Mixing And Matching COVID Vaccines
The World Health Organization's chief scientist on Monday advised against people mixing and matching COVID-19 vaccines from different manufacturers, calling it a "dangerous trend" since there was little data available about the health impact. "It's a little bit of a dangerous trend here. We are in a data-free, evidence-free zone as far as mix and match," Soumya Swaminathan told an online briefing. "It will be a chaotic situation in countries if citizens start deciding when and who will be taking a second, a third and a fourth dose." (7/13)
CNBC: Most Fully Vaccinated People Who Get Covid Delta Infections Are Asymptomatic, WHO Says
People who are fully vaccinated against Covid-19 are still getting infected with the delta variant, but global health officials said the shots have protected most people from getting severely sick or dying. “There are reports coming in that vaccinated populations have cases of infection, particularly with the delta variant,” Dr. Soumya Swaminathan, the World Health Organization’s chief scientist, said at a press briefing Monday. “The majority of these are mild or asymptomatic infections.” (Mendez, 7/12)
While Israel begins administering boosters —
Axios: Israel Becomes First Country To Offer COVID-19 Vaccine Booster Shot
Israel on Monday will begin offering a third dose of Pfizer and BioNTech's coronavirus vaccine as a booster shot for people with weakened immune systems, according to the Times of Israel. It's the first country to offer booster shots to bolster protection against the rapidly spreading Delta variant. The Israeli Health Ministry is still determining whether an extra shot should be offered to the general public. (Knutson, 7/12)
And on U.S. donations —
Axios: White House Sends Vaccines To Laos, Fiji And Costa Rica
The Biden administration will ship over 1 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines Monday to Laos, Fiji and Costa Rica, Axios has learned. This allotment is part of the pledge by President Biden to deliver 80 million doses of the vaccine globally as the U.S. seeks to be a leader in distribution on the world stage. (Mucha, 7/12)
